Cody Gakpo looked as though he was making his Liverpool return at the perfect time. The form forward this season behind Mohamed Salah, he had made it off the bench twice ahead of the crunch Champions League meeting with PSG — but after a setback, Arne Slot now has some decisions to make, not least when it comes to Diogo Jota.
Speaking at a press conference, Slot refused to rule Gakpo out entirely after a routine block in training led to some discomfort, and the Dutchman has travelled with the Liverpool squad. But a start in Paris looks highly unlikely, which will force the head coach into a decision.
Perhaps the simplest solution would be to shift Luis Diaz back out to the left, leaving one of Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez to take their natural berth through the middle. That’s what Slot did in the win against Newcastle, with Jota earning the nod on that occasion.
But it has to be said that neither Jota nor Nunez are in particularly sparkling goalscoring form. While Salah has more than made up for any shortfall, Liverpool will not want to turn up to the Parc des Princes with a one-dimensional threat.
Slot might think about the winning formula he used away to Manchester City. On that occasion, he dealt with Gakpo’s absence from the start by adopting a kind of 4-2-2-2, something he had previously tried out in pre-season.
Curtis Jones and Dominik Szoboszlai effectively led the line as twin false nines, with the latter chipping in with a goal (no prizes for guessing who scored the other one). Neither Jota nor Nunez even made it off the bench.
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There’s a definite temptation to repeat that system against PSG. It gave Liverpool a really solid look without undermining its threat, making it well-suited to a European away first leg.
Having said that, while Liverpool looks to have effectively written off Nunez at this point, the same is not true of Jota. Though he is not in a rich vein of form, he probably just about retains enough trust to be handed a chance in Paris.
Slot is not averse to tinkering in game, and if it doesn’t work then we can perhaps expect to see the twin false nines again. But all things considered, it would be a slight surprise if Jota was not given the opportunity from the start.
When at his best, Jota can conjure half-chances from nothing, and turn half-chances into big ones. With the margins against PSG bound to be tight, that version of the former Wolves forward would be invaluable.
The question is whether Liverpool gets this version, or has to make do with the one who is goalless in six since his latest return from injury. But there would be few better places to announce his return than at the Parc des Princes.
Predicted Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Mac Allister, Szoboszlai; Salah, Jota, Diaz.
